Hermeneutic approach to the 'Swan Lake' ballet, or why Siegfried must die within the mythopoetic landscape of this work

Initially, the Tchaikovsky's ballet "Swan Lake" existed in two stage versions: an "unhappy" and a "happy" one. Both versions were associated with love. What do we know from the mythology about Aphrodite, the goddess of love? Firstly, she materialized out of the sea foam, meaning that she was born at the interface of two elements. Secondly, she has both, an anthropomorphic and a zoomorphic incarnation. Thirdly, the zoomorphic incarnation of Aphrodite is the swan, i.e. a bird related to the interface of elements. Obviously, one should not overlook the sexual component of the waterfowl's symbol. Suffice is to take the example of Penelope, who is not only the spinning "female spider", but also a sea-duck -sea-foam related sexual object. How does the heroine of the "Swan Lake" act in the established mythopoetic framework? How does her nature affect the development of the erotic line of the ballet? The story of relationships between the heroes of the "Swan Lake" is based on the interaction of two pairs, where the woman's pair of Odette/Odile is complemented by a man's pair of Siegfried/Rothbart. One should recall the ancient symbolism of twins with whose characters the myths are filled. A woman's pair of twins has been identified for a long time. It was Yuri Grigorovich who happened to guess that Rothbart was a double of Siegfried. For this reason, the choreographer introduced a character of the Evil Genius, who copies the Prince's movements. What happens in the female part of the ballet? The pair of twins (Odette-Odile) gets separated closer to the finale. Odette, the "day" bird, leaves the lake. At the symbolic level, the swan taking wings corresponds with the life. The water, as the element of chaos and death, becomes home of Odile, the "night" incarnation of the female goddess. Odette becomes a flying Aphrodite, the love. Odile acquires features and qualities of Persephone, the Mistress of the underworld, and Demeter, the goddess-mother. With whom do the male twins stay? The "Swan Lake" ends with the celebration of the heavenly status of waterfowl, with the flight of Odette. However Siegfried, being under a new vow with Odile, has to stay with her, i.e. die symbolically in the water element. Refusing and following the first oath does not save him from death, either: then, he would need to follow Odette, who had departed out of this world. By the final, Siegfried and Rothbart become indistinguishable. Death of any of them means the death of both. Although in the "Swan Lake", it is men who are merging, the fundamental world of ballet is feminine. Odile is the initiator of the cosmogonic act. Rothbart is her "prehistoric" spouse and subject to liquidation. Therefore, Odile is so assertive in initiating Siegfried. After all, he is the spouse of a new generation, a new world, and a new order. Odette parts with Siegfried, flying toward the "eternal life" - and in order to reach that, it is necessary to die. The dying Siegfried follows the bird to join her in marriage. As he goes into the water, he is destined to meet the same Odette there, however, in the incarnation of Odile. This mythology is so ancient and so universal that similar subjects, taken as the basis of this ballet, can be found elsewhere. Let us just say that the Russian fairy tale "The Frog Princess" contains almost all the motifs present in the "Swan Lake", starting from the "borderline" and up to the "sexual" elements dealing with undressing and even death.

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